Department: Philosophy, Religion & Classics

Amy C. Cottrill

Assistant Professor of Religion

Office:

Berte Humanities Building 211

Contact Information:

Box 549025
Birmingham-Southern College
900 Arkadelphia Rd
Birmingham, AL 35254
Office Phone: (205) 226-7830
Office Fax: (205) 226-3089
E-mail: acottril@bsc.edu

Brief Career Background:

2007- Assistant Professor of Religion, Birmingham-Southern College

Educational Background:

Emory University, 1997-2006
Ph.D., Hebrew Bible

Ulpan Akiva: Netanya, Israel, Summer 2000
Certificate in Modern Hebrew Study

Methodist Theological School in Ohio, 1994-1997
Master of Divinity

Earlham College, 1989-1993
A.B. in English Literature, with College and Departmental Honors

Areas of Academic Interest:

My primary area of research is the book of Psalms in the Hebrew Bible, particularly the Psalms of individual lament. My book, Language, Power, and Identity in the Lament Psalms of the Individual, focuses on how the speaker of the prayer addresses God, represents the pain he experiences, and what he assumes God should do on his behalf to end the situation of suffering. I am interested in the connection between interpretation and ethics, particulalry as it relates to the interpretation of biblical literature.

Courses Taught:

RE 205 Hebrew Bible
A study of the history and literature of the Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament.The course locates the Hebrew Bible in its historical context in the ancient Near East and explores the new ways of thinking about sacred texts that have emerged in modern biblical studies.A discussion-rich course, students will be equipped to enter into discussion with Jewish and Christian interpreters who wrestle with the political, ideological, and theological implications of these texts, both in the ancient world and in modern settings.

RE 215 Christian Scriptures
A study of the history and literature of the Christian Scriptures, or New Testament. The course equips students for culturally-cued reading of these texts by exploring the historical setting from which they emerged, bringing significant themes of this early Christian literature into conversation with issues of concern in modern Christian theology.Topics may include wealth and poverty, Jewish/Christian relations, the place of women in the early Christian movement, and appropriations of the narratives of Jesus (the Gospels) in film.

RE 221 World Religions
An introductory survey of such major world religious traditions as Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism,Taoism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Course topics may vary each time the course is taught. In addition to a historical overview of diverse thought traditions and practices, a primary focus will be the response to modernity and the challenge and change in contemporary religious thought. Additional topics may include the place of women in these different traditions, understanding of diversity and pluralism, and responses to religious violence (an IC designated course).

RE 405 Seminar in Old Testament (1)
An advanced textual study in one or more books of the Old Testament with a focus on major interpretive themes, such as biblical perspectives on ecology, gender, peace and violence, suffering, and liberation. Attention to a diversity of interpretive approaches and exegetical methods will be a primary concern. Prerequisite: one unit in RE.